A Socio-Ecological Approach to A Community-Based Health Promotion Intervention on the U.S.-Mexico Border: Insights and Lessons Learned During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Healthy Families Healthy Kids Initiative (HFHKI) is a community-based initiative developed based on the socio-ecological model to address preventive health care needs in El Paso County, Texas, one of the most economically and health-challenged border communities in the United States. HFHKI’s three main goals are to increase access to experiential learning and health education, service delivery, and sustainable systems/linkages of care. These were accomplished through seven critical activities. We present the rationale, background, setting, and conceptual framework for the initiative, followed by the methods used to develop and assess the success of the activities and results of our project outcomes. We end with a discussion of lessons learned and future directions. We also share insights gained from our community health promotion intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic, which will enrich current conversations among applied social scientists. Overall, our project served 2,347 participants of all age ranges during our first year of project implementation across all 7 activities. We recommend the use of the socio-ecological model in designing, implementing, and improving health interventions aimed at enhancing family and community health, with each intervention tailored to the needs of different segments of the community. While the need to contain the COVID-19 virus amid the pandemic has created challenges in health promotion efforts, the need to help affected communities regain control of their health cannot be stressed enough. Our project can serve as an implementation framework for community-based projects on the U.S.-Mexico border

Nutritional management for gestational diabetes

© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Gestational diabetes mellitus is defined as diabetes diagnosed in the second or third trimester of pregnancy. Untreated or persistent maternal hyperglycemia may have a negative effect on the pregnancy. Medical nutrition therapy, physical activity, self-blood glucose monitoring, and, if necessary, pharmacological therapy are strategies used in the management of gestational diabetes. The nutrition prescription consists of an individualized and culturally appropriate meal plan that promotes adequate nutrition, appropriate weight gain, and normoglycemia. Optimal blood glucose in gestational diabetes is key to improving outcomes not only during pregnancy but also in the future of the mother and her child

Oral versus vaginal misoprostol for labor induction

OBJECTIVE: To compare the safety and effectiveness of vaginal with oral misoprostol for induction of labor. METHODS: A total of 107 women with clinical indication for induction were randomly assigned to receive oral or vaginal misoprostol. Doses of 100 μg of oral or 25 μg of vaginal misoprostol were given every 3-4 hours. If cervical ripening or active labor did not occur repeated doses of oral (100-200 μg) or vaginal (25-50 μg) were given until labor was established. RESULTS: Fifty-nine women received oral misoprostol and 48 received vaginal administration. Delivery time was similar for the vaginal and oral arms (1074 ± 488 minutes versus 930 ± 454 minutes P = .11). Parity was significantly different (P = .04) for the vaginal and oral groups. The cesarean delivery rate was similar for the vaginal and oral arms (17% versus 15% P = .72). The number of medication administrations was consistent between groups. Birth weight was not different for patients in the control and treatment groups (vaginal 3281 ± 507 g versus oral 3359 ± 541 g P = .44). Chorioamnionitis and tachysystole were comparable for the oral and vaginal groups. There was no statistical difference in neonatal outcomes. Similar proportions of infants were admitted to the well baby nursery and intermediate care nursery. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that in a closely supervised hospital setting with adequate monitoring oral misoprostol has the potential to induce labor as safely and effectively as its vaginal analogue. © 2002 by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Determination of fluoride in drinking water and in urine of adolescents living in three counties in Northern Chihuahua Mexico using a fluoride ion selective electrode

This study was carried out to determine fluoride in drinking water and in urine of adolescents, ages 15-20 years, living in Northern Chihuahua Mexico. Participants are from a cross-sectional study on health effects of chronic fluoride exposure from drinking water. A total of 201 participants (106 female and 95 male) in the study were recruited from three counties. Samples of drinking water of each county were collected and analyzed using the U.S. EPA Fluoride Ion-Selective Method. Statistically significant difference of fluoride content in water was found among the three counties of recruitment (Cd. Juarez; 0.3 mg/L, Samalayuca, 1.0 mg/L, and Villa Ahumada, 5.3 mg/L). Fluoride content in wells and tap water samples of Villa Ahumada ranged from 5.0 to 5.7 mg/L. Fluoride content of these samples was above the level permitted by Mexican regulations. The fluoride content in bottled water obtained from local stores in Villa Ahumada ranged from 0.3 to 3.7 mg/l. Fluoride in urine samples of each participant was also analyzed using the U.S. EPA Ion-Selective Method. The mean fluoride urine concentration (reported in mg/g creatinine) in adolescents living in these counties was 0.792±0.39, 1.33±0.67 and 2.22±1.16 (Cd. Juarez, Samalayuca and Villa Ahumada), respectively. The high fluoride urinary levels found in participants from Villa Ahumada may be associated to the high fluoride level (5.3 mg/L) in dinking water. The accuracy of measurements was assessed with reference materials in water and in urine. Mean fluoride recovery was 99.0% and 99.6% in water and in urine, respectively. The levels obtained were within the assayed 5% confidence levels. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Removal of copper, lead, and zinc from contaminated water by saltbush biomass: Analysis of the optimum binding, stripping, and binding mechanism

Experiments performed on the Cu(II), Pb(II), and Zn(II) binding by saltbush biomass (Atriplex canescens) showed that the metal binding increased as pH increased from 2.0 to 5.0. The highest amounts of Cu, Pb, and Zn bound by the native biomass varied from 48-89%, 89-94%, and 65-73%, respectively. The hydrolyzed biomass bound similar amount of Pb and 50% more Cu and Zn than the native. The esterified biomass had a lower binding capacity than native; however, esterified flowers bound 45% more Cu at pH 2.0 than native flowers. The optimum binding time was 10 min or less. More than 60% of the bound Cu was recovered using 0.1 mM HCl, while more than 90% of Pb was recovered with either HCl or sodium citrate at 0.1 mM. For Zn, 0.1 mM sodium citrate allowed the recovery of 75%. Results indicated that carboxyl groups participate in the Cu, Pb, and Zn binding. © 2007

Interaction of nanoparticles with edible plants and their possible implications in the food chain

The uptake, bioaccumulation, biotransformation, and risks of nanomaterials (NMs) for food crops are still not well understood. Very few NMs and plant species have been studied, mainly at the very early growth stages of the plants. Most of the studies, except one with multiwalled carbon nanotubes performed on the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and another with ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) on ryegrass, reported the effect of NMs on seed germination or 15-day-old seedlings. Very few references describe the biotransformation of NMs in food crops, and the possible transmission of the NMs to the next generation of plants exposed to NMs is unknown. The possible biomagnification of NPs in the food chain is also unknown. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Effect of indole-3-acetic acid, kinetin, and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid on plant growth and uptake and translocation of lead, micronutrients, and macronutrients in alfalfa plants

Alfalfa plants germinated and grown for 15 d in soil containing 80 mg Pb kg-1 were treated with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) at 0.8 mM and indole-3-acetic acid-kinetin (IAA-KN) at 100 μM. Fifteen days after the treatment application, the concentration of lead (Pb), macronutrients, and micronutrients was determined using inductively coupled plasma/optical emission spectroscopy. The chlorophyll content and plant growth were also measured. Roots of plants exposed to Pb alone, Pb-EDTA, and Pb-EDTA-IAA-KN had 160, 140, and 150 mg Pb kg-1 DW, respectively. Pb was not detected in the stems of plants exposed to Pb alone; however, stems of plants treated with EDTA and EDTA-IAA-KN had 78 and 142 mg Pb kg-1 DW, respectively. While the Pb concentration in leaves of plants treated with EDTA and EDTA-IAA-KN was 92 and 127 mg kg-1 DW, respectively. In addition, EDTA and EDTA-IAA-KN significantly increased the translocation of zinc and manganese to leaves. The x-ray absorption spectroscopic studies demonstrated that Pb(II) was transported from roots to leaves without a change in the oxidation state. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Concentration and biotransformation of arsenic by Prosopis sp. grown in soil treated with chelating agents and phytohormones

The aim of the present research was to study the effects of cysteine (Cys), cyclohexylenedinitrotetraacetic acid (CDTA), nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), and kinetin (KN) on the arsenic (As) concentration and speciation in mesquite (Prosopis sp.) grown in soil containing 30 ppm (parts per million) of As III or 50 ppm of AsV. Inductively coupled plasmaoptical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) determinations revealed that, compared with As alone, roots of plants treated with 2.5 mM CDTA or 0.5 mM of Cys + 100 μM KN increased total As concentration from AsIII by ∼20 and 36% and from AsV by 100 and 65%, respectively. Liquid chromatographyinductively coupled plasmamass spectrometry (LC-ICP-MS) studies revealed that in roots, AsIII remained without change, whereas both AsIII and AsV were found in plants grown with As V. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) studies revealed that As within plants was mainly coordinated to three sulfur atoms, with interatomic distances of 2.26 Å. Results suggests that Cys + KN increased the mesquite tolerance to AsV, because plants grown in AsV had roots of similar size to plants grown without As. © CSIRO 2008

Thermodynamic and isotherm studies of the biosorption of Cu(II), Pb(II), and Zn(II) by leaves of saltbush (Atriplex canescens)

The Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms were used to describe the biosorption of Cu(II), Pb(II), and Zn(II) onto the saltbush leaves biomass at 297 K and pH 5.0. The correlation coefficients (R2) obtained from the Freundlich model were 0.9798, 0.9575, and 0.9963 for Cu, Pb, and Zn, respectively, while for the Langmuir model the R2 values for the same metals were 0.0001, 0.1380, and 0.0088, respectively. This suggests that saltbush leaves biomass sorbed the three metals following the Freundlich model (R2 \u3e 0.9575). The KF values obtained from the Freundlich model (175.5 · 10-2, 10.5 · 10-2, and 6.32 · 10-2 mol · g-1 for Pb, Zn, and Cu, respectively), suggest that the metal binding affinity was in the order Pb \u3e Zn \u3e Cu. The experimental values of the maximal adsorption capacities of saltbush leaves biomass were 0.13 · 10-2, 0.05 · 10-2, and 0.107 · 10-2 mol · g-1 for Pb, Zn, and Cu, respectively. The negative ΔG{ring operator} values for Pb and the positive values for Cu and Zn indicate that the Pb biosorption by saltbush biomass was a spontaneous process. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved